For a Friend
by CrowingShoopuf
Summary: It's Valentines day in Konoha, yet Rock Lee isn't feeling the festive nature that he feels he should be entitled to. Slight LeeSaku. And I mean slight slight. x3 OneShot.


Blooming Kisses

Rock Lee sat cross-legged on the earthen floor of his quiet training ground. Valentines Day was still budding into life; the early morning light brought cascading shadows sliding over the various objects that would be used for honing his skills. His teammates weren't supposed to meet here today; Neji and Tenten were probably still asleep.

The young taijutsu specialist had made a habit of arriving early in order to give him the edge over the other ninja in Konoha, even though his sensei had assured him that there was no need.

Some people called him the green beast of the hidden leaf village; he'd rather refer to himself as Lee. He had to train constantly in order to keep improving the taijutsu skills that made him a known master of hand to hand combat.

He knew the serenity of the cool morning would be short-lived once the rest of Konoha woke up to a day that was much awaited by its people. Valentines Day was always a big event in the city; festivals would appear and couples would swarm over the streets and gather at every event.

The principals of the day were rarely pondered by Lee's quick-thinking mind. He had no time for chasing girls all day, as much as others may disagree with him. All ninja ranked Chuunin and below were given the day off from any missions and tasks in order to do as they wished.

_Even the Fifth herself sees importance in this event._

However, not everyone would take that opportunity to rest or celebrate. Lee knew for certain that two people would not be enjoying the love-based festivities. Neji and Sasuke would definitely be taking this day to their advantage. If he was to keep up with those two geniuses, he had to train even more than they did.

That left little time for fleeting romantics.

Yet for some reason, this year had him thinking about it more than usual. The yearned for love of his life Haruno Sakura would have boys kneeling at her feet today, hoping to win her love. This shinobi had always thought differently.

_If I work hard enough, I'll be able to impress Sakura-Chan with skills that rival even Guy-Sensei's!_

This had been his motive for years; it seemed to be only today that cracks momentarily appeared in his resolve.

The previous night Naruto had approached him eagerly, speaking of a competition that would win Sakura's heart. The orange-haired Nin was sure that getting hold of numerous Valentines would embody the male-based irresistibility that the Uzumaki thought they both deserved. But then, believing that the world would lie down and acknowledge him one day had always been a future reality for Naruto. Thus, Lee has ceremoniously turned his proposal down.

The thought of his response make him smirk,

"_You're not gonna? In that case Bushy Brows, when Sakura sees how great I am tomorrow, I'll be sure to give you a mention!"_

That boy never had been one to think before he spoke. It was a shame really, that one single off-shot comment had managed to rip Lee from his normally positive and determined self and plunged him into a state of uncertainty.

Naruto was always trying to win Sakura-Chan over but Sasuke on the other hand, had never needed to train or work in order to earn Sakura's affection. From what he had heard, she was growing up now and becoming more mature, but that hadn't mattered to Sasuke. He still blew her off at every chance possible.

Lee had ideas, that maybe she'd changed her mind since they last spoke of it. He never brought it up in any conversation. Try as he might, Lee was no more tolerant of this kind of defeat than any other guy.

_Love's not something I can train for and improve on. _

The thought brought mixed feelings into his mind, questions that he had no time for. People would start to get up very soon, and then the advantage he'd planned to have over his two competitors would be as good as lost.

He looked over to the stump on his right. A freshly picked cherry blossom sat idly, the morning sunlight emphasizing the white and pink that delicately coloured the petals.

_I don't think my pink-haired Goddess will be wearing that in her hair today after all._

Without moving, he reached for the flower. He held it between his fingers, momentarily giving life to the small, fragile blossom before returning it to its original position.

Standing up, Rock Lee pulled himself together. Valentines Day or not, he needed to train.

"Alright! If I can do two thousand kicks to that stump before the sun reaches the highest point in the sky then Sakura-Chan will realize-"

Realise what, Lee-san?"

The Nin momentarily paused as he watched Sakura appear from behind the bushes at the edge of the training Ground.

"Aha! Could it be that my Cherry Blossom Goddess has come for me?" He exclaimed.

The pink-haired girl giggled slightly.

"I'm afraid not, Green Beast of Konoha." Lee raised one of his thick, black eyebrows.

"Oh? So what else brings you here then, Sakura-Chan? I didn't think you'd even be awake at such early hours." Lee had softened his tone when he saw her smile quickly fade.

"I think, I just need to law low for today"

"Hmm, so you've come to marvel at my wondrous Taijutsu skills!" The comment had done its job; he watched a small smile escape her lips.

"You don't mind me hiding here then, Lee?" She asked, sitting down.

"I'm always happy to have your company Sakura, but why are you hiding? Aren't you going to be enjoying the festivities today? Won't someone find you here?"

"Don't worry; Ino's got it covered for me. She's gonna use her 'Irrestistable Kunoichi charm' to keep all the boys at bay. And that's the thing, Lee. I can't do what Ino does; I can't keep that attitude around the boys. She makes it look so easy, but it's not something I'm any good at. Anyway, when she realised that I wasn't feeling the same about Sasuke-Kun, she admitted that she'd stopped a while beforehand. She was just doing it…"

The pink-Haired Shinobi paused; thinking how to phrase what she was trying to say.

"Ino's the kinda' girl who enjoys competition, y'know? Anyway, the point is, I don't really feel in the right mood to toy around with love."

Lee didn't quite know what to say. He'd never heard Sakura say such meaningful things to him before.

_Sounds like Valentines day gets to all of us sometimes…_

Before he could reply, Sakura picked up the Cherry blossom that he'd left on the tree stump.

"Is this for anyone in particular?" She inquired.

Lee didn't blush; instead he sat down next to her.

"Well it was for you, Sakura-Chan but it doesn't matter. I was going to give it to you today, but-"

"I accept"

Lee was startled by her interruption.

"What?"

"I'll wear it today, Lee-San. Consider it my way of saying thanks?" holding the side of her fringe up, Sakura paced the blossom neatly behind her ear.

"And what are you thanking me for, Sakura-Chan?"

"For listening. I interrupted your training and then threw all of my worries onto you and you didn't so much as complain. So for that, I'll wear your present." She couldn't help but grin as tears of joy rolled down Lee's face.

"Are you crying?" She asked through surprised laughter.

"Yes! Thank you Sakura-Chan!" He jumped in the air as high as he possibly could, almost landing on her. They were both laughing, unable to control themselves.

"Thank you so much!"

--

Originally started on Valentines Day, but it dragged out longer than I'd meant it to. X3 R&R and tell me what you think!


End file.
